Google announced the launch of a new algorithm that will both reduce rankings for low-quality sites while providing better rankings for high-quality ones. So the question is, what qualifies a site as low-quality?
According to the Official Google Blog, low-quality sites are loosely defined as “low-value add for users, copy content from other websites or sites that are just not very useful.” Although duplicate content has always been a no-no, its interesting to note that Google did compare the results of this algorithm with the top blocked sites from the Personal Blocklist Chrome extension, which proved to garner similar results. The Personal Blocklist Chrome extension, a free download for its Chrome browser, allows users to block sites from their search results.
This new algorithm will reportedly affect 11.8% of search queries, which at approximately 2 million searches per minute, will affect a significant number of sites. Here are a few tips to keep from getting your rankings lowered as well as staying off the Blocklist:
- Use original content, nobody likes a copycat
- Provide useful information, stay away from generic keyword stuffed articles
- Always consider the user, do not write simply for ranking purposes
About Kim Frederiksen